Dive Brief:
- Facebook now offers users an option to create 360 degree photos.
- The capability works when uploading a series of photos using certain apps, such as Street View and Google Camera, which Facebook then takes and stitches into a 360 degree image.
- Facebook previously launched 360 degree video last year, adding it to users’ news feeds in September.
Dive Insight:
For marketers, 360 degree photos offer another innovative rich media resource to tell a brand story, and at least initially grab some attention, thanks to the newness factor of the content type.
In a blog post, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said: "The big difference with 360 photos is you can take them with your phone. Just take a panorama or use a 360 camera app, then post it to Facebook and we'll take care of the rest."
Facebook has been actively offering new twists on rich media for its users and marketers alike, previously rolling out 360 degree video, actively promoting live video streaming via Facebook Live, and now offering 350 degree still images.
Brian Blau, an analyst for Gartner, told Mercury News: "Photos can be very expressive and tell a story in a much different way. It's a common medium that we all know well and I think that's one of the reason why you see Facebook, Google and other technology companies focus in on photo and imagery."
Facebook described some of the tech specs for the format on a microsite dedicated to 360 degree photos: “To be recognized as a 360 photo, your photo file must have the correct metadata. We currently recognize iPhone, iPad, and Samsung Galaxy panoramas, photos from Street View, Google Camera or Cardboard Camera and photos taken with a dedicated 360 camera.”